Buckhead’s tunnel of darkness will stay that way for a while longer
Buckhead’s tunnel of darkness will stay that way at least until the end of the year.
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Drivers know when lighting crews are working in Georgia 400′s “Justice C. Martin Tunnel” in Buckhead.
Traffic slows to a crawl and has been since Georgia’s Department of Transportation (DOT) and Georgia Power reached a deal to replace lights earlier this year.
The lights started failing over a decade ago, and the remaining lights went dark in December 2021.
GDOT estimated installing more than 700 LED replacement lights would take at least four to six months, but Georgia Power subcontractors may not finish until the end of the year.
GDOT said the electrical panel that supplies power is in a vault below the intersection of Peachtree Road and Lenox Road. Flooding has been a problem for decades, and the plan was to move the power supply adjacent to the tunnel.
MORE COVERAGE | BUCKHEAD'S TUNNEL OF DARKNESS
However, seven months into the repairs, the work to move the power is on hold until Georgia Power can secure an easement from a property owner. Georgia Power would not disclose the landowner’s name but provided this statement:
“Significant progress has been made on the GA 400 Tunnel Lighting Project. Crews have completed work on both North- and South-bound outside lane walls. Crews are currently installing fixtures on the Northbound inside lane walls. Our crews are focused on safety first, and this project is particularly challenging, given the location. Daytime lane closures granted by GDOT have been extremely helpful.”
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Agreement on the needed easement has been reached, however, Georgia Power is still working with the landowner to finalize the legal easement. From there, GDOT will clear the right-of-way from the transformer to the service point. Then Georgia Power will be able to install the transformer that will feed power to the new electrical panel.”
Georgia Power estimates the new tunnel lights may be operating by the end of the year.
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